This relates to a method and apparatus for extracting information from a signal and, more particularly, to a method and apparatus for extracting identity information from the conventional Tacan signal while using a minimum amount of receiver duty cycle.
There currently exists methods of extracting navigation information (distance and bearing) from standard Tacan/DME signals while utilizing only a small percentage of the airborne receiver duty cycle, i.e., less than 1%. This has made practical the time-sharing of an airborne receiver in order that a plurality of airborne functions may be performed, e.g., IFF and Joint Tactical Information Distribution Systems (JTIDS-I and JTIDS-II). However, the current techniques of detecting the identity signal, employed in all existing military Tacan and civilian distance measuring equipment (DME) sets still requires 100% receiver duty cycle during detection of the identity signal which may last for up to 5 seconds during every 37.5 second interval. As a consequence, time-sharing is impractical using standard techniques of identity signal detection.